1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to the treatment of tobacco.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Numerous processes have been proposed for the treatment of tobacco in order to obtain an enhanced tobacco product. United Kingdom Specification No. 15,280/08 describes a process, intended to improve the quality of a tobacco, in which the tobacco in green condition is impregnated with juice expressed from green leaves of a superior tobacco and the juice-impregnated tobacco is heated. Before it is applied to the tobacco to be improved, the juice may be allowed to ferment.
According to a tobacco-treatment process disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,500,834, tobacco leaves with a high moisture content are frozen as soon as possible after being harvested, preferably within 6 to 8 hours. The frozen tobacco is then thawed and dried. The removal of water from the thawed tobacco may be assisted by pressing. Tobacco subjected to this process is said to have a reduced alkaloid content.
A process alleged to improve the burning properties of tobacco and to provide other advantages is described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,616,801. The tobacco is contacted with water to obtain an aqueous tobacco extract, the extract is treated to reduce the ion content thereof and the treated extract is recombined with the tobacco from which it has been extracted.
A process claimed to result in cured tobacco of altered composition is the subject of U.S. Pat. No. 3,845,774. Yellowed tobacco leaves are cut into small pieces and are then homogenised in a blending or grinding machine. The homogenised tobacco is incubated to effect curing, after which it is dried. In order to use the resultant particulate tobacco in cigarettes, it would be necessary to subject it to a sheet or filament reconstitution process, for example a reconstitution process of the "paper" type.
It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved tobacco-treatment process by use of which an advantageous tobacco product may be obtained in economic fashion, whilst recourse to sheet or filament reconstitution is avoided.